The exam structure
TCS runs the NQT as a single proctored sitting of roughly 190 minutes with sectional timers, which means you cannot borrow time from an easy section to rescue a hard one. The shape reported for the recent cycle looks like this:
| Part | Section | Questions | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| Foundation | Numerical Ability | ~20 | ~25 min |
| Foundation | Verbal Ability | ~25 | ~25 min |
| Foundation | Reasoning Ability | ~20 | ~25 min |
| Advanced | Advanced Quantitative & Reasoning | ~15 | ~25 min |
| Advanced | Advanced Coding | 2 problems | ~90 min |
- ✓Sectional timers are strict - plan a per-question pace before you sit down.
- ✓Recent cycles have carried no negative marking, so attempt everything.
- ✓TCS has revised this structure more than once. Treat the table as the recent shape and confirm section names, counts and timing on the official TCS NextStep portal for your own cycle before you build a plan around it.
Practice this now
The three tracks: Ninja, Digital and Prime
The same test sorts candidates into different roles, which is why the Advanced part matters even though Foundation is what qualifies you. Broadly: the Ninja track is evaluated on the Foundation sections, while Digital and Prime require strong performance across Foundation and Advanced, including the coding problems, and are followed by more demanding interviews.
The practical consequence is a strategy decision. If your goal is simply to clear and get an offer, Foundation accuracy is the priority. If you want the higher-package tracks, coding is where the separation happens - and no amount of aptitude accuracy substitutes for two clean, working solutions.
Practice this now
Related reading
Foundation: Numerical, Verbal and Reasoning
Nothing here is exotic. The numerical section draws on the standard high-frequency chapters, the reasoning section on the standard type list, and the verbal section on grammar, vocabulary and comprehension. What makes it hard is the clock, so preparation should be pace-first.
- ✓Numerical - percentages, profit & loss, ratio, averages, time & work, time-speed-distance, interest, number systems, permutations and probability, plus basic data interpretation.
- ✓Reasoning - series, coding-decoding, blood relations, directions, seating, syllogisms, clocks and calendars, and data sufficiency.
- ✓Verbal - error spotting, sentence completion, para jumbles, synonyms and antonyms, and reading comprehension.
- ✓Pace target - roughly 60 to 75 seconds per numerical question and under 60 for most reasoning and verbal ones.
Practice this now
Advanced Coding: what to actually practise
The coding block is the largest single time allocation in the paper, and it is where most candidates either secure a good track or lose one. TCS problems have historically leaned on clear input-output handling and standard logic rather than exotic algorithms - which means the failure mode is usually a mishandled edge case or an input format read wrong, not a missing insight.
Practise in one language you are fluent in - C, C++, Java or Python are all accepted - and practise writing complete programs that read input and print output in an exact format, not just functions. Candidates who only ever solve on platforms that hand them parsed arguments routinely lose marks to input parsing under time pressure.
- ✓Arrays and strings - reversal, rotation, frequency counts, palindromes, substring searches, matrix traversal.
- ✓Number theory basics - primes, factors, GCD and LCM, digit manipulation, Armstrong and perfect numbers.
- ✓Sorting and searching - implement them once by hand, then use library sorts confidently.
- ✓Pattern printing - still common, and pure practice; nobody derives these under pressure.
- ✓Simple recursion and dynamic programming - factorial, Fibonacci, subset sums and staircase-style problems.
- ✓Always handle the edges: empty input, a single element, all-identical values, negatives, and the maximum stated size.
A six-week study plan
The plan is deliberately front-loaded on numerical work, because that is the section where a weak foundation quietly caps your score, and back-loaded on mocks, because sectional timing is a skill that only develops against a real clock.
| Week | Focus | Daily commitment |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Numerical core: percentages, ratio, averages, profit & loss | 20 timed questions + review |
| 2 | Numerical advanced: time & work, speed-distance, interest, numbers | 20 timed questions + 5 coding basics |
| 3 | Reasoning: all ten types, one type a day | 15 timed questions + 1 coding problem |
| 4 | Verbal: grammar rules, then a daily comprehension passage | 1 passage + 15 questions + 1 coding problem |
| 5 | Coding focus: arrays, strings, recursion, patterns | 2 coding problems + 1 mixed aptitude set |
| 6 | Full-length mocks under exact timing, then error review | 1 mock every other day |
After the test: technical and HR rounds
Clearing the NQT gets you an interview, usually technical followed by managerial and HR elements, sometimes combined into one sitting. The technical conversation is grounded in your own resume: the language you claim, your projects, and core computer-science subjects.
Prepare four things properly. One language you can discuss in depth - not three you can name. Your final-year or major project, including why you chose each part of it and what you would change. Core subjects: data structures, DBMS with real SQL queries, operating systems and networks. And the standard HR set: introduce yourself, why TCS, your strengths and weaknesses, relocation and service-agreement questions.
- ✓Expect 'explain your project' to occupy a large share of the technical round - rehearse a two-minute version and a ten-minute version.
- ✓Be honest about what you do not know; interviewers probe further when they sense bluffing.
- ✓Know your resume line by line. Anything on it is fair game.
- ✓For HR, have a genuine answer for why this company - a specific reason beats a rehearsed compliment.
Practice this now